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People running around the track. Pickleball and basketball. Swimming lessons and water aerobics. These are some of the activities that will take place at the Benzie Wellness and Aquatic Center, located at the former site of Crystal Lake Elementary in Benzonia. That’s the hope and the plan, but the reality is still years away. “We anticipate the capital campaign … for two or three years, with construction in 2029 and opening in 2030,” says Diane Tracy, vice president and development chair of the non-profit BWAC board.

A “Bay to Bay” hiking, paddling and camping trail proposed for the Sleeping Bear Dunes National Lakeshore has generated excitement among local business owners and recreation enthusiasts but also attracted significant opposition from private property landowners who live near the trail’s potential route. Staff at the National Lakeshore have subsequently slowed planning for the Bay to Bay Trail initiative. They extended the public comment period by an extra month this fall, and have drawn out the project’s scoping phase until next summer.